Army builds homestays to boost border security

IN a strategic move blending national security with local economic revival, the Indian Army has inaugurated tent-based homestays in the remote border village of Garbyang in Uttarakhand.

- NARENDRA SETHI@ Dehradun

Located precariously close to the frontiers of both China and Nepal, the village serves as the crucial ingress point for pilgrims traversing the high-altitude routes to Kailash-Mansa-rovar, Lipulekh Pass, Om Parvat, and Adi-Kailash.

The Army has formally handed over the newly constructed facilities to the local village committee.

This initiative is seen as a multi-pronged strategy: bolstering border security by encouraging permanent local habitation, and injecting vital revenue into a region grappling with demographic decline.